I was unaware of what my first observation at Maroon Institute would result in as I previously had no experience in observing a class of young elementary students for the purpose of research. As I began my observation of the students, I witnessed them focusing on a art project that involved painting masks typically associated with The Day of the Dead, a Mexican holiday and tradition. It was interesting noting how this art project was not based off of a domestic tradition and that it was still appealing to the students who were dedicating their effort towards a creative project. The learning opportunity provided by Uptown Arts to its students was inspiring. Though the actual painting process was highly engaging to the students, what was more profound was the instructor’s brief yet dynamic instances of teachable moments. The most notable moment was when the instructor helped one student mix various colors to create another color using a large color wheel as a reference. The student was able to visualize how the creation of one color was the product of a mixture of primary and secondary colors. While these moments were brief, they were substantial for the student to not only be able to create colors but to also understand how these colors were to be created and eventually evolve into greater passions for the arts that could potentially result in the next Picasso.
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Since this was my first observation for the research project, I did not know what to expect regarding how many students would participate and how the program would be structured. I wished that I was more prepared before arriving to the classroom as there were a couple of extra things I needed to do before I would be able to take notes for the observation, including knowing the names of students who were eligible for observation, finding a way to identify the students, and being able to record as much information about the classroom as possible before being able to record in class discussions. I did not expect for the students to be painting Day of the Dead masks that were supposed to be worked on before the end of October. Due to the teachers strike, it delayed the beginning of the program so that these projects did not begin until mid-November. I would suggest that for the next observation, I be able to clarify which students were given permission to be observed and be able to find a way to record conversations in a more efficient manner so that not every single detail had to be recorded at once to the extent that it would be overwhelming to the observer.
Over the course of this semester, I learned a lot about the process of attempting to complete a research project like this, particularly in schools. From completing CISI to collecting consent forms, I better understand the amount of preparation it takes to be able to begin actually collecting data. Not only did we have difficulties collecting parent consent forms to be able to observe at least a few students from each program, but we also had to readjust our schedule due to the teacher’s strike that caused the after school programs to be cancelled. It was unclear during the strike to know when it would end, so we had to be patient and continue to prepare for observations until we knew when school would be back in session. I also learned that it takes time and some trial and error to know what procedure works best for everyone involved. For example, to collect surveys, I found that for some students, particularly younger ones, the language needed to be changed for them to better understand what was asked of them and that more researchers needed to be involved so that students could work on the survey with someone one-on-one. I also gained a better understanding of all the people who are involved with the project and how much it truly takes for a project like this to run smoothly. I learned about various programs, including Zotero and SPSS, to cite works and input data that will be important to analyze when it comes time to present my research next semester.
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March 2020
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